Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic said he had “no hard feelings” following an incident involving the cancellation of a visa he had obtained online and a deportation in January before the Australian Open, according to a Thursday report from the Associated Press.

“It's great to be back in Australia,” Djokovic said on Thursday. “It's a country where I've had tremendous success in my career, particularly in Melbourne. It's by far my most successful Grand Slam. I'm hoping that everything is going to be positive. Obviously [fan reaction] is not something that I can predict.

“I'll do my best to play good tennis and bring good emotions and good feelings to the crowd.”

Novak Djokovic said he still had difficulty forgetting what happened in January even after he was granted his visa before the Australian Open. The now-No. 5-ranked player's potential three-year exclusion period was also overturned one day after No. 6-rated Felix Auger-Aliassime defeated Rafael Nadal on his way to becoming the first player to beat Nadal, Djokovic and Swiss tennis player Roger Federer.

“Obviously what happened 12 months ago was not easy for me, for my family, team, anybody who is close to me,” he said. “It's obviously disappointing to leave the country like that.

“You can't forget those events. It's one of these things that stays with you for, I guess, the rest of your life. It's something that I've never experienced before and hopefully never again. But it is a valuable life experience for me and something that as I said will stay there, but I have to move on.”

Novak Djokovic has missed several events in North America since his deportation, including a U.S. Open that featured a win by the then-No. 1-ranked Carlos Alcaraz over then-No. 4 Casper Ruud this summer.

The Australian Open will begin on Jan. 16. The tournament will be broadcasted on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN+ and ABC.